There are over 537,200 workers employed in the plumbing industry.

While plumbers do tasks like unclogging sinks and toilets, they also face some inherent risks of working around water, electricity, and gas.

The right insurance for plumbers ensures the plumber, their business, and their employees are properly protected.

If you’re new to the plumbing industry or expanding your business, reevaluating your insurance coverage is a good time.

What insurance do plumbers need? Read on to learn about the different types of insurance and what coverage it provides.

What Is Plumbers Insurance?

When becoming a plumber, you might think about what insurance coverage you need. Not only do you need to protect yourself, but you also need to protect your plumbing business.

Plumbing insurance is a type of specialized plumbing insurance that works to protect plumbers from the specific types of risks they face.

For example, a plumber might need insurance when:

• There’s property damage during a plumbing project or repair
• Clients complain there’s negligence during a job
• Damage or theft to equipment
• Professional auto insurance

If you employ other workers, you need to protect them in case of injury on the job, too.

Who Is Covered Under Plumbers Insurance?

You might be surprised to learn there are many different types of workers in the plumbing industry beyond licensed plumbers.

Plumbers insurance covers:

• Plumbing business owners
• Plumbing contractors
• Pipe contractors
• Sprinkler system installers
• Sewer and drainage system installers
• Sump pump installers
• Water heater installers
• Home builders, contractors
• Handyman services

Most states require plumbers and other service providers to have certain types of insurance to protect themselves and the people they work for if something goes wrong.

Types of Insurance for Plumbers

It’s essential to work with an insurance provider experienced with insuring plumbers and understand the risks they face with their work.

Some insurance policies they should absolutely have, and others are smart to consider adding on.

Let’s take a closer look at the different types of insurance you want as a plumber.

General Liability Insurance

General liability insurance is one type all plumbers must have as protection. General liability covers the plumber from:

• Bodily injury
• Property damage
• Personal and advertising injury

General liability coverage will cover you if something is broken while repairing a client’s home. If the client comes to inspect your work and trips on your equipment and is injured, general liability coverage protects you.

This type of liability coverage protects third parties while you’re providing your services.

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance gets more specific to the type of services a plumber provides. This insurance would cover:

• Professional negligence
• Errors made while working
• Breach of contract
• Failure to perform the task hired for
• Failure to complete work on time

Generally, professional liability insurance is used by any professional to protect against potential negligence.

While general liability covers potential injury or accidents on your property, professional liability covers the plumber if there is an error while performing their professional duties.

Business Property Insurance

As the name suggests, business property insurance covers your physical business property. It would protect your office or warehouse from things like weather damage, theft, or other accidents.

For example, if your business location suffered a fire, all your supplies and equipment were lost or damaged. Business property insurance would cover the loss, so you could quickly get back on your feet.

Worker’s Compensation Insurance

Most states require businesses that have employees to carry worker’s compensation insurance. This type of insurance covers an employee injured or ill while on the job.

The insurance would cover the employee’s medical bills and lost wages. If the employee suffers a severe injury, the insurance can pay for long-term treatments, disability, or retraining if they can’t return to their previous job.

This type of coverage also protects the employer since even a minor injury can be immensely costly and put a small business at risk if it has to cover the expenses of the injured employee.

Commercial Auto Insurance

Commercial auto insurance covers the vehicles used for the business. Like you have car insurance for your personal vehicles, commercial auto provides liability and damages coverage for your business vehicles.

This coverage would protect you if a worker was driving to a job and was in an accident where they caused damage to a building.

This coverage protects the business vehicles when you or an employee are in an accident and there are injuries, death, or property damage.

Product Liability Insurance

Product liability insurance is essential for plumbers because of the type of work they do. The insurance provides liability coverage if they install a product or part and it fails to cause damage in a home.

Let’s say the plumber installs a new faucet in the bathroom for a client. After installation, a faulty pipe related to the new faucet burst and caused significant water damage in the client’s home.

The client will want to hold the plumber accountable. The coverage would pay for repairs and damages due to the faulty product installed by the plumber.

Equipment Insurance

If you have an abundance of tools or equipment or highly specialized equipment, you may want to get a policy specifically to cover it if it’s lost, damaged, or stolen.

In some cases, other parts of coverage might protect equipment. But if you have some with a high value, you may want a separate policy to protect them.

Insurance for Plumbers, Making Sure You’re Covered

Many different types of coverage are important insurance for plumbers to ensure they have the wide range of protection they need while doing their work and running their business.

Working with an insurance agency that understands the risks of being a plumber is important and will ensure you have the coverage you need. Contact us today to learn more about the types of plumbers insurance you need to be protected.